Tragedy in Japan

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Japan as they continue to suffer through the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and the resulting nuclear crisis. It is hard to imagine the stress of the traumatic experiences they have endured, coupled with the ongoing uncertainty of what will happen next.

As all Riverkeeper supporters know, for the past decade we have been working tirelessly to retire the aging nuclear power plant situated on the shores of the Hudson River, Indian Point. There are many components to our campaign to retire Indian Point, the risk of a power failure due to a natural disaster or an accident is just one of them.

However, the events unfolding in Japan, combined with recent studies from Columbia University establishing two active seismic faults under Indian Point, have moved the concerns about a potential earthquake to the forefront.

According to MSNBC’s analysis of data from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Indian Point is the most vulnerable among all 104 nuclear reactors in the U.S. to suffer core damage as the result of an earthquake.

Riverkeeper is calling for an immediate, objective and independent analysis of the earthquake risk posed to Indian Point and its implications for plant operation, emergency response, evacuation planning. Until Indian Point can be proven safe, it should be closed.

Riverkeeper is also calling for the spent fuel at Indian Point to be moved out of the poorly-protected pools on site and into safer dry-cask storage.

Please visit the Riverkeeper site for more details on the Indian Point Campaign, and donate what you can to the Indian Point Legal Fund.

Latest news coverage.

R.O.A.R. joins with RVK to protect Hudson River Fish

Religious Organizations Along the Hudson River (ROAR) is a group of nine congregations with property along the Hudson. We’ve had ROAR members aboard on the Tappan Zee, at Indian Point and at Kingston – three outings with 22 guests. Their mission statement reads, in part, “we share kinship with all creation” and “human beings and the natural world must go into the future as a single sacred community or both will perish.” Riverkeeper and ROAR are working together on shad and herring protection and restoration. They are wonderful partners and we are very grateful for their help.

Sampling for fish larvae with SUNY Stony Brook

We were sampling for fish larvae counts with the SUNY Stony Brook team when Clearwater sailed by between us and Indian Point.

Damn environmentalists are everywhere.

The Department of Homeland Security boat passing under our stern - very close to the sample net for larvae. SUNY Stony Brook researchers on the stern.

Fish larvae sampling near Indian Point

Santiago Salinas from SUNY Stony Brook and his helper for the day, Jin Gao, with their larvae sample net just north of Indian Point. This is the first day of sampling. Last year we sampled monthly but this year we'll increase to two days per month. Last years study found rapid changes in species and numbers of larvae. Doubling the sampling interval will increase resolution.

Sampling will probably continue through August. After that fish will likely have grown beyond larval stage.

Indian Point power plant uses 2,200,000,000 gallons of river water per day for cooling and kills billions of fish larvae As well as young of year, yearlings and adults.

Sampling for Fish Larvae

Photo by Alice DisonSampling for fish larvae off Indian Point with SUNY Stony Brook researchers.

Radioactive contamination in shellfish studied

Photos by John Lipscomb

Patrolled with Indian Point Policy Analyst Phillip Musegaas. We gathered clams from the bottom of the east end of Haverstraw Bay in a “practice run” to prepare for eventually having clams and other shellfish analyzed for radioactive contamination that may be a result of the leaks from Indian Point’s spent fuel pools. Radionuclides, particularly strontium-90, concentrate in the bones and shells of fish and shellfish. Several samples of Hudson River fish have already shown slightly elevated levels of strontium-90, but the results are inconclusive because of fish migration patterns. Sampling shellfish would provide a better picture of the leaks’ effects on the Hudson ecosystem. Testing clams for strontium-90 is especially critical because they are a major food source for Atlantic and Shortnose Sturgeon that winter in Haverstraw Bay.


Photo above shows clams and typical (healthy) bottom sediment in lower estuary.

LDEO's Acoustic Doppler Retrieved

Photos by John Lipsomb

Off Indian Point to retrieve an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler for Lamont-Doherty. We deployed this unit on May 5th and it has been recording a 3-D image of current speed and direction since then. The area around Indian Point and Stony Point is where the north end of the "salt wedge" is often located and there are some very interesting mixing dynamics at this location. One photo shows the actual retreival process and the other shows the ADCP on deck with Indian Point in the background.

Australia News asking about Nuclear Power Plants

6/19/06 Off Indian Point with a film crew from the Australian Broadcast Corporation. Australian's are debating whether or not to constuct their first nuclear power plants and Riverkeeper was asked to comment on the issues surrounding nuclear power and the danger of a possible terrorist strike on a nuke plant.

Photos by John Lipscomb

Riverkeeper Boat Log for May 2006

All photos by John Lipscomb

Deployin "Sub-Bottom" sonar.

Phillip Musegaas addembling the ADCP en-route to deploy at Indian Point.

Columbia Environmental Law class on the East River

Illegal dredging at the Englewood Boat Basin by Palisades Interstate Park. BUSTED!

Typical example of new private home constuction. This one on the shoreline just north of Catskill.

Gross sewage, oil and trash sludge on Newtown Creek.